The Fosters

“The Fosters follows Stef Foster (Teri Polo) a police officer, and her wife Lena Adams (Sherri Saum) a school administrator, and their multi-ethnic, blended family living in San Diego. Stef and Lena are the parents of Brandon (David Lambert), Stef’s biological son, and the twins, Jesus (Jake T. Austin/Noah Centineo) and Mariana (Cierra Ramirez) who were adopted as small children. At the outset of the series, the couple take in two foster children: Callie (Maia Mitchell) and Jude (Hayden Byerly) who have recently been removed from an abusive home. Also part of their lives is Mike Foster (Danny Nucci), Stef’s patrol partner/ex-husband and Brandon’s father. Much of the series takes place in their quiet San Diego suburb, and Anchor Beach Community Charter School, where Lena works and the Foster children are students.” (Wikipedia)

That’s an introductory paragraph to one of my five shows to watch. Apart from the fact that I think you should watch it because I love it, you should watch it because it, usually, does a great job of discussing and demonstrating issues and topics that aren’t typically shown in popular television shows. Currently finishing its third season, the show (in this season alone) has gone through so many ups and downs, taking its viewers from here to there that you can’t help but enjoy the roller coaster ride. Sometimes the problems are glossed over too quickly and you hope that they go more in depth on a topic you feel requires more attention. However, that does not take away from how tastefully these issues are brought about and concluded. In a course of three seasons, the Fosters has dealt with topics like: LGBTQ couples, interracial couples, blended families, drug addiction. juvenile detention, foster homes, rape, same sex marriage, adopted children, miscarriage, illegal dealings, privatization of public systems, abuse, dealing with mental disorders, steroids, suicide, cancer, alcoholism, illegal immigrants, star-crossed lovers, and more.

Dealing with such heavy issues can easily lead to less viewers. It was hard enough for the show’s creators, Bradley Bredeweg and Peter Paige, to get this show aired on television. They wanted to make a show that told stories that you don’t typically see.They initially wanted to have two gay men raising the family, mirroring their relationship, but thought it would be better to have two women because you don’t see that on TV at all. They share the storiesof their characters in a really compelling way that gets you invested. If you watch this show, you won’t just be a viewer, you will be a part-taker in the lives of these people.

If you decide to watch the show after this recommendation, stay tuned for weekly updates for reviews on new episodes.